January 6: Come Away With Me, My Love!
♫ Music:
Day 37 - Monday, January 06
Title: Come Away With Me, My Love!
Scripture #1: Song Of Songs 2:16a (NKJV)
My beloved is mine, and I am his.
Scripture #2: Zephaniah 3:17 (NKJV)
The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”
Poetry:
“Love Poem, With Birds”
by Barbara Kingsolver
They are your other flame. Your world
begins and ends with the dawn chorus,
a plaint of saw-whet owl, and in between,
the seven different neotropical warblers
you will see on your walk to the mailbox.
It takes a while. I know now not to worry.
Once I resented your wandering eye that
flew away mid-sentence, chasing any raft
of swallows. I knew, as we sat on the porch
unwinding the cares of our days, you were
listening to me through a fine mesh of oriole,
towhee, flycatcher. I said it was like kissing
through a screen door: You’re not all here.
But who could be more present than a man
with the patience of sycamores, showing me
the hummingbird’s nest you’ve spied so high
in a tree, my mortal eye can barely make out
the lichen-dabbed knot on an elbow of branch.
You will know the day her nestlings leave it.
The wonder is that such an eye, that lets not
even the smallest sparrow fall from notice,
beholds me also. That I might walk the currents
of our days with red and golden feathers
in my hair, my plain tongue laced with music.
That we, the birds and I, may be text and
illumination in your book of common prayer.
CHRIST SINGS OVER HIS BELOVED BRIDE
Beloved means “granted special treatment or attention.” Some of beloved’s synonyms: adored, cherished, esteemed, loved, admired, prized, favored, treasured, and special. Unfortunately, I am intimately familiar with the opposite of beloved: forgotten, ignored, abandoned.
My parents divorced when I was three years old, and I saw very little of my father during the remaining years of his life. The damage to my sense of self-worth and confidence associated with his leaving reverberated through my heart for many, many years. My mother, with her Borderline Personality Disorder, experienced emotional instability, shifting between intense love and severe criticism toward me; she had difficulty identifying and responding to my childhood emotional states; she expected me to tend to her needs while neglecting mine; she demanded that I take on the role of parent or friend rather than that of a needy child; and four times, she abandoned me. Feeling like a beloved child was something I knew nothing about.
I have longed deeply to be cherished by someone like the man depicted in Kingsolver’s poem, who is “more present than a man / with the patience of sycamores” who can spy a hummingbird’s nest high in a tree and knows “the day her nestlings leave it.” That person, so present in the moment, has such an observant eye that not even the smallest sparrow would fall from notice. Oh, to be seen like that!
Friends, my longings, and yours, too, can be satisfied in the person of Jesus, I am certain. The beautiful words of Kari Jobe in her song "My Beloved" remind me that Jesus calls me His beloved, delights in singing over me, and calls me beautiful. The very One who breathed life into me offers to take me to quiet waters, restore my soul, rest in Him, and be made whole. I am special.
I could never imagine my parents singing over me with such delight. But the good news? The Lord rejoices over me with singing. I don’t have to imagine that –– it is Truth. He is always near to hold and carry us in His everlasting arms, just as He held and carried me through my childhood when my parents abandoned me, He adored, treasured, and cherished me unconditionally. He does not abandon. I am His beloved.
He delights with exultant gladness upon all who trust in His name. Yes, the Lord rejoices over me, delights in me, and sheds his love upon me. With singing! And He does the same for you.
The one and only God of the universe takes great delight in you. Can you think of anything more wonderful and loving than God rejoicing in you with such happiness that He sings?
Prayer:
Lord, we thank you for your extravagant love so deep that you rejoice over your beloved sons and daughters with singing. Please open our hearts to grasp the depth of Your love for us. Help us comprehend the immense joy and delight You experience for us. Thank You for walking with us through the highs and lows of life in the past, and for what is to come. In Your name, our most loving Father, we pray.
Amen.
Dr. Robin LaBarbera, Ph.D., D.S.W.
Professor Emerita
School of Education
Biola University
LaBarbera Learning Solutions
Seal Beach, California
For more information about the artwork, music, and poetry selected for this day, we have provided resources under the “About” tab located next to the “Devotional” tab.
About the Artwork:
Passion Flowers and Hummingbirds
Martin Johnson Heade
1870–83
Oil on canvas
39.37 x 54.93 cm.
Museum of Fine Arts Boston
Public Domain
In his exquisite painting Passion Flowers and Hummingbirds, artist Martin Johnson Heade depicted two small, black-and-white Snowcap hummingbirds, a species found in Panama, and the most brilliantly colored species of passionflower, Passiflora racemosa, in a lush jungle setting. The passionflower is so named because missionaries to that region saw a relationship between the parts of the flower and the Passion of Christ—the corona filaments resembling the crown of thorns and the three stigmas relating to the nails in the cross.
Text was edited from Elliot Bostwick Davis et al., American Painting [http://www.mfashop.com/9020398...], MFA Highlights (Boston: MFA Publications, 2003).
https://collections.mfa.org/objects/33015
About the Artist:
Martin Johnson Heade (1819–1904) was an American painter known for his salt-marsh landscapes, seascapes, and depictions of tropical birds, as well as lotus blossoms, and other still lifes. His painting style and subject matter, while derived from the romanticism of the time, are regarded by art historians as a significant departure from those of his peers. He studied with American folk painter Edward Hicks. His friendships with artists of the Hudson River School led to an interest in landscape art. During a career that spanned almost seventy years, Heade, an ardent naturalist and traveler, painted a great variety of subjects: portraits, luminous salt-marsh scenes, seascapes, tropical landscapes, hummingbird and orchid pictures, and floral still lifes.
https://collections.mfa.org/objects/33015
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Johnson_Heade
About the Music: “My Beloved” (single)
Lyrics:
You're My beloved, you're My bride
To sing over you is My delight.
Come away with Me, My love.
Under My mercy come and wait
'Til we are standing face to face.
I see no stain on you My child.
You're beautiful to Me,
So beautiful to Me. (x2)
I sing over you My song of peace,
Cast all your care down at My feet.
Come and find your rest in Me.
I'll breathe My life inside of you
I'll bear you up on eagle's wings
And hide you in the shadow of My strength.
I'll take you to My quiet waters,
I'll restore your soul .
Come rest in Me and be made whole.
You're My beloved, you're My bride.
To sing over you is My delight.
Come away with Me, My love.
About the Composers: Klaus Kuehn and Kari Jobe
Born in Germany, Klaus Kuehn and his family emigrated to the United States when he was a year old. By the time he was ten, the family had moved to Canada and Klaus was actively pursuing classical studies in piano. His musical tastes and style were shaped by the music and passion of Keith Green and other contemporary artists. Klaus encountered God in a significant way at the age of twelve. Through the influence of godly parents, Klaus, his older brother, and two younger twin sisters were raised in an environment that put God first. After graduating high school in Canada, Klaus attended Christ for the Nations in Dallas, Texas. It was during that time that worship became the passion of his life. After graduating CFNI, Klaus married Julie in McKinney, Texas. He has been actively involved in leading worship both domestically and internationally since graduating CFNI. From 2003 to 2005, he returned to CFNI as the worship leader, bringing the students into the presence every morning. During that time, he recorded and produced both the Glorious and Overtaken CDs. Recently Klaus has partnered with Integrity Music to release a new recording, "Glory.” He is the director of Pure Worship Ministries and travels extensively.
https://www.last.fm/music/Klaus+Kuehn/+wiki
About the Composer/Performer:
Kari Jobe (b. 1981) is an American contemporary Christian music singer and songwriter. Since her first album in 2009, she has received two Grammy Award nominations and ten Dove Award nominations, six of which she won. Jobe established herself as one of the Christian music industry’s premier female vocalists with her Dove Award–winning, self-titled debut album. She has released three follow-up albums, and has been nominated for a number of additional prestigious accolades. For nearly two decades as a well-respected worship leader, Kari Jobe has been using her gifts to lead people into the presence of God. Originally from Texas and now residing in Nashville, she tours the country with her husband, Cody Carnes, and their two boys and they both serve at their home church, the Belonging Co. in Nashville, TN.
https://www.karijobe.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
About the Poetry & Poet:
Barbara Ellen Kingsolver (b. 1955) is a Pulitzer Prize–winning American novelist, essayist, and poet. Her widely known works include The Poisonwood Bible, the tale of a missionary family in the Congo, and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, a nonfiction account of her family's attempts to eat locally. In 2023, she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for the novel Demon Copperhead. Her work often focuses on topics such as social justice, biodiversity, and the interaction between humans and their communities and environments. In 2000, Kingsolver established the Bellwether Prize for Fiction. Named for the bellwether, the literary prize supports writers whose works support positive social change. The award is given to a US citizen for a previously unpublished work of fiction that addresses issues of social justice.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Kingsolver
About the Devotion Author:
Robin LaBarbera, Ph.D., D.S.W.
Founder/CEO
LaBarbera Learning Solutions
Professor Emerita, Biola University
Dr. Robin LaBarbera is a Biola University professor emerita now working as an independent research and program evaluation consultant who partners with nonprofit leaders to amplify their programs’ impact and bring human flourishing to the communities in which they serve.